Count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
Akaki Tsereteli ( ka, აკაკი წერეთელი) (1840–1915), often
mononymously known as Akaki, was a prominent
Georgian poet and national liberation movement figure.
Early life and education
Tsereteli was born in the village of Skhvitori,
Imereti region of western Georgia on June 9, 1840, to a prominent Georgian aristocratic family. His father was Prince Rostom Tsereteli, his mother, Princess Ekaterine, a daughter of
Ivane Abashidze and a great-granddaughter of King
Solomon I of Imereti.
Following an old family tradition, Tsereteli spent his childhood years living with a peasant’s family in the village of Savane. He was brought up by peasant nannies, all of which made him feel empathy for the peasants’ life in Georgia. He graduated from the
Kutaisi
Kutaisi ( ; ka, ქუთაისი ) is a city in the Imereti region of the Georgia (country), Republic of Georgia. One of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, it is the List o ...
Classical Gymnasium in 1852 and the University of
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
Faculty of Oriental Languages in 1863.
Career and legacy
Tsereteli was a close friend of
Ilia Chavchavadze
Tavadi, Tavadi (Prince) Ilia Chavchavadze ( ka, ილია ჭავჭავაძე; 27 October 1837 – 12 September 1907) was a Georgians, Georgian journalist, publisher, writer and poet who spearheaded the revival of Georgian nationalism ...
, a Georgian progressive intellectual youth leader. The young adult generation of Georgians during the 1860s, led by Chavchavdze and Tsereteli, protested against the
Tsarist regime and campaigned for cultural revival and
self-determination
Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage.
Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...
of the
Georgians
Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and Peoples of the Caucasus, Caucasian ethnic group native to present-day Georgia (country), Georgia and surrounding areas historically associated with the Ge ...
.
He is an author of hundreds of patriotic, historical, lyrical and satiric poems, also humoristic stories and autobiographic novel. Tsereteli was also active in educational, journalistic and theatrical activities.
The famous Georgian folk song
Suliko is based on Tsereteli’s lyrics. He died on January 26, 1915, and was buried at the
Mtatsminda Pantheon in
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...
. He had a son, Russian opera impresario
Alexey Tsereteli. A major boulevard in the city of Tbilisi is named after him, as is one of Tbilisi's metro stations.
Tsereteli is known for his
Armenophobia. He attacked Armenians for their perceived mercantilism and portrayed them as a flea sucking Georgian blood in one fable.
See also
*
Aneta Dadeshkeliani
*
Tsereteli
*
Tsereteli (Tbilisi Metro)
References
Bibliography
Georgian Information Portal biography*
Donald Rayfield (2000), ''
The Literature of Georgia: A History'', pp. 159–168: "The luminaries: Ilia Chavchavadze & Akaki Tsereteli", .
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsereteli, Akaki
1840 births
1915 deaths
Burials at Mtatsminda Pantheon
Poets from the Russian Empire
People from Imereti
Writers from Georgia (country)
19th-century poets from Georgia (country)
Nobility of Georgia (country)
Male poets from Georgia (country)
19th-century male writers